Beautiful Beasts
by kuroneko52
Summary: When a stranger strikes a deal with Xanatos, the Manhattan Clan finds themselves rubbing elbows with a stranger clan than others they've met. Slight AU; Beware of OCs. Rated for mentions of mature subject matter.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing from the Gargoyles canonverse. I own OCs. There's gonna be tons of 'em gliding around.

Nyaa.

**=^-.-^=**

**Chapter 1**

Human cities all looked the same – they always had, for as long as Mephistopheles had been alive. Manhattan's maze of streets, its glass towers and motor-powered vehicles… they were just an impressive spin on a layout that he had seen many, many times before. His destination, the Eyrie Tower, was a refreshing call-back to a time he had not seen since before the birth of his dear Faust, and even then only because of the ancient Castle Wyvern that was seated at its top.

"What will you say when you confront this human, Papa?" A younger male glided just under his wing, sharing his leader's striking white hair, but lacking his beard and pale blue skin. But he was lanky, built for speed rather than brawn.

"I don't know, Thaddeus." Mephistopheles glanced at the fledgling with a frown.

Thaddeus looked worried. The young always did – it was their uncertainty that did it. "Mama said this man has many resources, and that he's unscrupulous. She'll be mad when she finds out you've gone to him."

"Faust will forgive me in time. Don't worry, child." He shot the younger gargoyle an amused glance. "Of course, should I suddenly go missing, don't be afraid to ask your dear mother where she has hidden the body."

The youngster chuckled nervously. "I hope that's a joke…"

Mephistopheles didn't respond. Thaddeus' shaky smile fell quickly, and he found his determination to keep a solemn manner unexpectedly renewed.

They caught an updraft that carried them to the top of the building, high over the castle walls. Mephistopheles circled it for a moment curiously before descending and landing on a tower. Thaddeus had hardly done the same when they heard a nearby howl, similar to a dog or a wolf. The lavender-skinned fledgling gave a start at the sound, fighting muscles tensing before his elder put a heavy claw on his shoulder. "That is a beast, Thaddeus. I had expected gargoyles to be here, but not beasts. That does not mean we can let it catch us off-guard."

Thaddeus nodded. "Like Lupa. I have your back, Papa."

Mephistopheles chuckled, putting the fledgling at ease. "Come. This Xanatos knows we are here. He made sure that the clan who resides here would be on their patrols, or hidden elsewhere."

"We don't get to meet them?" The boy sounded disappointed.

"Another time, if things go well." The large gargoyle descended the stairs to the courtyard. Before they had even reached the bottom, a pair of human men came out to meet them. Mephistopheles draped his wings around his shoulders, leading his son to do the same, and held out a claw to the brunette. "David Xanatos."

"Mephistopheles. You're much more intimidating than I thought you would be." Xanatos mused, shaking the gargoyle's hand. "We should go inside. I'm afraid I wasn't able to convince Goliath's clan to patrol all at once. They still have some… mild suspicions about humans like me."

"David and Goliath." Thaddeus muttered under his breath, following the other three. "Akriel was right; the Divine _does_ have a strange sense of humor…"

"Given our experiences with the clan who lives in the castle, I am surprised that your second isn't older, Mr. Mephistopheles." Owen Burnett looked pointedly at the young, lavender gargoyle.

"Thaddeus is not the second in our clan. My Faust is. She is home."

"Faust is your second? Johanna Faust?" Xanatos raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Isn't she a little… human?"

"When it suits her to be human, yes. Yes, she is." Mephistopheles smiled over his shoulder as Thaddeus gave a muffled chuckle. He stopped when Xanatos opened his office door. "I do not enter a room _before_ a strange human. Especially not with one of my fledglings accompanying me."

Xanatos actually smiled at that. "Understandable. I happen to be a family man as well."

"Papa is the leader of nearly fifty gargoyles. Maybe even more! He is like a father to all of us, but I am actually of his blood." Thaddeus spoke up now, closing the door as the last one in the room. As he spoke, his ears stayed honed in on anything in the hallway that might be someone sneaking up on them. "My father was born in a time when hatchlings did not know their blood-parents. I am lucky to know who my father and mother are."

It was Xanatos' turn to hide a chuckle at the odd little gargoyle's chatter. His own son was already talking, and the boy was hardly a year old! Then again, Alexander wasn't entirely human, either. He folded his arms and leaned against his desk. "Well, Mephistopheles, your earlier e-mail sounded like you had a proposal. As you know, ever since I decided to hire Anton Sevarius over Faust, she's refused to have anything to do with my companies."

"Yes… She's quite stubborn like that. What she forgets, however, is that she lacks your overseas connections. Now that the common population knows about our kind once more, however, she will be persuaded to do what must be done, whether she likes it or not." Mephistopheles opened his wings briefly, holding up a large, metal-encased suitcase he had brought with him. He held it up so that both humans could see its odd, oval shape. "Since you hired Sevarius, and know about gargoyles, I will presume that you've tried your hand at cloning one at some point or another. I've seen this 'Thailog' that runs one of your rival companies – I must say, the resemblance to your Goliath is uncanny, but it is not as good as it could have been. Of course, Sevarius has never been known for quality work, and he relies on science alone. The egg in this case, however, was made using the genetic science that you hired Sevarius for… in 1988."

"Really?" Xanatos lifted a brow slightly. Old habits – and interests – die hard. Besides, knowledge of genetics was relatively new, and it had taken Sevarius many attempts to create Thailog from Goliath's blood sample.

Mephistopheles nodded and opened the case, revealing the egg. As he held it out to Xanatos, he said, "If you hold it, you will feel it the hatchling moving inside. It will hatch at the next Spring Equinox." He watched the human pick up the egg. He could see the spark of interest in the man's eye. Curiosity did strange things to a mortal… especially when combined with power lust. "As you know, my Faust has done her own impressive things with genetics. Given your resources, I thought I might ask you a favor… provided we can come to an agreement, of course."

"Of course." Xanatos could feel a small, powerfully-active body rolling around in the egg. "I'm listening."

"The number of my people has been dwindling for some time now. We may not be nearing extinction, but we're getting there. I would like your help in procuring blood samples from clans that live in other countries." Mephistopheles took the egg back, gently locking it back in its metal case. "I know where the clans hide. I know how to get to them. However, I lack the funding and the tools."

"Which is where I come in." the human finished, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "And how am I supposed to trust you really have this information, or even the science to back up the cloning process?"

"It's better than mere cloning, Xanatos – it's genetic recombination. Uniting the blood of gargoyles who will most likely never meet one another in their lifetime, let alone produce an egg. It _is_ time-consuming… but it is also very, very rewarding to have a generation of hatchlings who owe their very creation to you. I should know; the rookery that this egg belongs to is not the first that Faust and I have created."

"You can't honestly be considering this, can you, Sir?" Owen stepped in, adjusting his glasses. "Gargoyles like Thailog and the clones only have flaws because they were artificially aged and programmed. A gargoyle egg takes ten years to incubate before it hatches… A long-term investment, at best."

Yes, but David Xanatos owed the presence of his son to Goliath's kind. Without the gargoyles, Oberon and Titania would have taken Alexander to Avalon. "You make a good point, Owen. If I'm going to make this 'investment', I will need some reassurance that none of my enemies get to the scientist or her clan of gargoyles." He smirked mildly at Mephistopheles, who lifted his head as he waited to hear the price. "Mephistopheles, I'll agree to this… but you'll have to convince Faust to conduct her research and experiments here. I've heard about the petty break-ins to her lab from last year, when environmentalists broke in. Obviously, they didn't get anything, and hardly had time to do any damage, but they were still able to break in. My enemies will have better firepower than that."

"A fair trade." The gargoyle looked amused. "I will present your offer to Faust. If she accepts, she will call as soon as she makes up her mind. If she refuses… I suppose I will have to really get on her bad side and trick her into it. I only pray that she doesn't come up with a colorful way to kill me first." He turned and walked towards the door. "Thaddeus. We're leaving now."

* * *

The next evening, Elisa Maza was joined on the elevator by a small, ivory-skinned redhead wearing a lab coat and an aggravated frown.

"Which floor do you need?" the Detective asked.

"I am going to the castle at the top." Faust looked at the panel of buttons. Seeing the top floor's was lit up, she tilted her head slightly and gave Elisa a suspicious look. "Are you one of Xanatos' employees?"

Now it was Elisa turn to frown. "Definitely not."

"Ah." The redhead paused. It was obvious that she was uncomfortable with the silence between them, because she quickly asked another question: "So, why are you here?"

Elisa smiled a little. "You wouldn't believe it if I told you."

Faust raised a calculated eyebrow. "…Are you privy to the gargoyles, then?" When she didn't get an immediate answer, the younger of the two waved a hand. "It's not my business. I'm sorry I asked. I have a lot on my mind right now."

"Are _you_ here about the gargoyles?" The Detective's guard was up. Usually, when a scientist mentioned gargoyles, things never turned out well.

"I have no interest in the clan that resides here." She paused a moment, then turned awkwardly and held out a hand. "I am Johanna Faust. Yes, I am a geneticist. No, I am not here to clone any gargoyles, nor do I really want to be here."

Elisa shot the girl a strange look. "Alright." She made no movement to shake the outstretched hand.

It quickly dropped and Faust turned back to face the doors. "Sorry. I'm no good with people. Normally, I work in my own lab… and I don't like being away from it at night like this." She sighed heavily, running a hand through her hair. "I ask about your clan because it's so rare that a human be part of a gargoyle clan, and from what I've been told, this one isn't very big. That… depresses me."

"Oh?"

Faust nodded. "The biggest clan I've ever seen had a rookery with thirty-six eggs in it. Thirty-six! At best, that's eighteen mated couples, and that's assuming there's an equal male-to-female ratio _and_ that they're all heterosexual. That also means that there were _seventy-two_ biological parents to that rookery!" She sighed again, this time looking more hopeful than anything. "Could you imagine seeing so many gargoyles at one time?"

"You know a lot about gargoyles."

"I've lived with them for a very long time."

Elisa glanced at her, hiding her surprise well. "How many are in your clan, then?" She couldn't help but ask… just in case this Faust was telling the truth.

"Not seventy-two." Faust said as the elevator came to a halt and opened its doors. She continued her power-walk pace, eager to be out of the confined space with the strange woman who hadn't even introduced herself. "Lovely chatting with you, miss."

The sun was setting. Elisa hurried to Goliath's battlement at the top of the tallest tower, eager to tell him about the new stranger in the castle. When she got to the top, however, she found that Xanatos was already there, waiting on the sun to set and the gargoyles to rise as well.

"Ah. Hello, Detective." Xanatos smiled as the angry woman reached the top of the stairs.

"I met your new employee." Elisa growled. "I thought we had a deal, Xanatos: No more schemes!"

"You must be talking about Faust." He smirked when the comment earned him a reprimanding glare. "Yes, it _was_ a very last-minute decision on my part. Her mate came to me with an offer I couldn't refuse. Claimed he didn't want her out of work."

"Then I suggest you refuse it anyway! You really think that Goliath's going to let a scientist poke and prod at his clan? Especially with Brooklyn and Katana's egg so close to hatching?!"

"That's why I'm here to talk to Goliath. I had hoped that Faust would _call,_ rather than just send me a colorfully-worded e-mail before arriving an hour later, but… well, it seems that I only bring out the best in _one_ redhead." He looked amused. Elisa wanted to hit him. She probably would have, if not for the disappearance of the sun's final rays and the sound of crumbling stone.

Xanatos stepped aside so that Goliath would see Elisa first; it just didn't seem like a good policy to present the large gargoyle with bad news immediately after him waking up.

**=^-.-^=;;**

Dun dun dunnn… I'd like to remind everyone and anyone reading this of the high OC-count and mild AU elements. Feel free to ask questions about the plot, but be aware that many will PROBABLY be answered in later chapters. I do request comments on any of the canon characters, though. I like to know if I'm writing them right.

Nyaa.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** All Gargoyles canonverse items belong to Greg Weisman. The OCs are mine. You hear me?! Mine!

Nyaa!

**=^n.n^=**

**Chapter 2**

"You did _**what?!"**_ A lesser man would have cowered or run for his life at the sound of Goliath's booming roar, or when his wings were thrown to their full spread and his eyes turned an angry bluish-white color. Even if he _wasn't_ a lesser man, Xanatos would later contemplate the merits of having at least stepped back a little, if only to show respect for the angry gargoyle.

Instead he held up both of his hands, waving them a little. "Easy, Goliath. It's not what you think. I intend to be entirely forthcoming about this."

"I do not care for your games, Xanatos! I did not agree to return to this castle just to have you turn us into lab rats within a year of making your promise to _stop_ such schemes!" Goliath growled, his large claws clenched into fists the size of bowling balls. It was easy to see why everyone from the Vikings of old to Xanatos himself had trouble holding their own against the great leader.

Even so, this was getting old fast. Xanatos frowned flatly. "Then we're in luck; Faust is not here to work with your clan at all. She specifically refused _your_ clan from her experiments." Maybe he shouldn't have used the word 'experiments'…

"He's not just talking about _this_ clan, Xanatos, and you know it!" Elisa snapped, hands on her hips. "The other gargoyle clans that you're talking about are friends of this one. Now you're talking about _attacking_ them for – "

"Who said anything about attacking? I have non-lethal methods. I even have entirely _diplomatic_ methods." Granted, _those_ methods had been immediately followed by an attack in the past, but between the burly Goliath and equally-impressive Mephistopheles… Well, Xanatos would be playing a losing game if he decided to get them _both_ mad at him in one gesture.

Goliath snorted, folding his arms across his massive chest. "I have my doubts about your 'diplomatic' method. And if this woman _is_ so trustworthy and empathetic to my kind's plight, why does she not introduce herself to my clan?"

"Because the last thing I need or want is to get attached to _another_ group of warrior-types." Faust appeared at the top of the steps, followed closely by the rest of Goliath's clan. They were giving her a mixture of both curious and suspicious looks. "I see that your ability to communicate continues to fail utterly, Xanatos. I should have known that a man with your reputation would have done _more_ than enough to piss off a clan of gargoyles. I wonder if you haven't created this sort of reputation with _all_ of the gargoyle clans of the Modern World."

"We could hear Goliath from the bottom of the tower." Brooklyn was watching Faust closely. He had the most to lose if she turned out to be a threat, after all. "You're a scientist?"

"A geneticist, yes. Did my lab coat give me away?" Faust pushed her glasses up her nose. Elisa noticed that her posture was different than it had been on the elevator; the redhead was now standing up straight, her shoulders back and her head held high. She was confident around the gargoyles. It made Elisa suspicious – did Faust think she could fool them? "As Xanatos said, I am here for my own reasons; he hired me because I've my _own_ clan to support, and I need money to do that. It's 1998." She shot a look at Katana and Egwardo, frowning slightly. "Hatchlings are more expensive than human babies are. I've only got a few short months to prepare the starter money that they will need."

"If you _really_ have a clan, why aren't any of them with you?" Faust looked down at Lexington. "Elisa's part of our clan. We keep an eye on her when she goes someplace new, just in case she gets attacked. Gargoyles do that for humans _and_ those who've lost their wings!"

"If any of my clan come within a hundred yards of _this_ guy," – She bobbed her head towards Xanatos. – "I will be very, very unhappy."

Xanatos sighed and shook his head. "Well, at least you're not the type to insult me behind my back."

Faust opened her mouth to tell him that he didn't want to hear the insults she gave him behind his back, but the sound of swooping overhead made her stop dead and look up. Three gargoyles had arrived, carrying a beast with them, and were making a circle around the castle. Mephistopheles was on point. She clenched her jaw and hissed, "Damn that man! Can't he do _anything_ that I ask?!" before hurrying down the stairs to get to the courtyard.

"We should greet them, lad." Hudson said, frowning at Goliath. "I don't trust a human that can create gargoyles using the same methods as Sevarius, but we owe it to our own kin. For Xanatos to trust her is suspicious; for a clan to trust her is the opposite."

Bronx sniffed the air and barked before rushing ahead of them, making the clan's decision for them. He could smell the beast that the strangers had brought with them. So could Fu-Dog – his fellow beast was hot on his heels, as eager to meet a potential friend as his brother.

They waited near Faust in the courtyard as the three gargoyles landed. The female beast that they put down barked loudly, running to the human with her tail furiously whipping from side to side. She was large and gray, and the three crested horns on either cheek made her look like a wolf when paired with her pointed ears. That was where her similarities to the animal ended, however; her tail was long and had mean-looking spines on them, and similar small horns were on her spine.

"Lupa!" Faust knelt down to greet the she-beast, who planted her front paws on the human's knees and licked her cheeks as though she hadn't seen the woman in ages. Sniffing her over once to make sure she was alright, Lupa relented in her playful attack and turned her attention on the two male beasts, wagging her tail and sniffing at them both curiously.

Faust turned _her_ attention to the male who had been on point. "Mephistopheles…" she growled dangerously, already balling her hands into fists. He raised an eyebrow, smirking at his angry human mate. His eyes lazily moved to something over her shoulder as well, and it _wasn't_ the two beasts that had rushed to meet them with her. Her eyes went wide for a moment. She had completely forgotten Goliath's clan!

She turned just as Goliath walked up behind her. "Goliath, this is Mephistopheles. He leads my clan." she said formally. "He has brought Thaddeus, Brighid and Lupa with him."

"I see." Goliath stepped forward, holding out a hand diplomatically. "Mephistopheles."

"Goliath." The two leaders shook hands. Mephistopheles looked down at Elisa. "And you are the human that our host warned us about."

"Detective Elisa Maza." As she shook the gargoyle's hand, she felt a small surge of guilt about her earlier encounter with Faust. "This is Hudson, Lexington, Broadway and Angela, Brooklyn and Katana, Nashville, Bronx, and Fu-Dog."

"Well met." Mephistopheles nodded to the clan before looking down at Faust. "I hope my dear Faust has been less lippy than she is at home."

She gave him a glare and a snort, crossing her arms. "I censor myself for no one." she growled. "Why are you here? Who is at the rookery?"

"Don't worry." Brighid, a tall, willowy female with pale pink skin and a soft voice, placed her hands on Faust's shoulders, leaning over slightly just so the human could fix her with an unhappy look. "Morrigan and Bris are watching the rookery. So is little Evangeline. Trust me, between her and Morrigan, the rookery is more than safe."

"How many of you are there in your clan?" Goliath asked, looking at Mephistopheles.

"Our clan will have just over thirty members, if all of the eggs in the rookery hatch. There are ten of them – many created by Faust." Mephistopheles looked down at the human pointedly, then gestured to Thaddeus. "Thaddeus and Evangeline were created by Faust. They are our children, so they have human blood."

"Dude! You're part human?!" Nashville blurted, earning him a reprimanding glare from Katana. He winced a little. "What? The only other gargoyle I've met that has human in 'em is Delilah, and she looks like Elisa!"

"Hold your tongue, lest you insult the boy!" Katana sighed, shaking her head. She looked at Thaddeus. "I apologize for him, Thaddeus."

The lavender fledgling smiled and shook his head. "Evangeline makes far worse jokes." Then he crossed his arms, a claw scratching his forehead as his brow furrowed in thought. "Of course, those are usually at _my_ expense, too…"

"Wait, wait, wait." Faust put up a hand, closing her eyes to keep a scowl off of her face. "There's a gargoyle flying around with human DNA?"

"Xanatos wasn't responsible for that one." Lexington said, "Thailog was. So was Demona, kinda."

"Ah." She frowned and looked up a Mephistopheles. "Thailog _and_ Demona."

"Don't worry yourself with them, Faust. They are exiles. You can tell just by looking at them."

Goliath frowned. "You've heard of Demona?"

"We've crossed paths." Mephistopheles got a dark look. "I'd prefer it if she never knew so much as Faust's name, let alone what she is capable of in both the arenas of science _and_ magic. The magic that Demona knows belong to either the human or the fay, if I'm not mistaken. I will not have her learn the ancient gargate spells that I have taught Faust as well, nor of Faust's alchemy. I hope you will shield her from Demona, should she ever attack while I am not here."

The Manhattan leader nodded. For now, perhaps, it was safe to trust this gargoyle and his clan – their human included.

"Good." Mephistopheles visibly relaxed. He looked at Faust and his other clanmates. "I will return home to keep an eye on things. Brighid, Thaddeus, Lupa; keep an eye on Faust. Faust, _try_ not to cause trouble for this clan." The expression on his face and in his voice was teasing.

Faust huffed at him, playing with her necklace. "Now where's the fun in being good _all_ of the time?"

* * *

"So, are there really ten eggs in your rookery?"

Angela had approached Brighid as soon as Faust had decided to get to work, shortly after Mephistopheles had left the two younger gargoyles and their beast to protect the human. She couldn't help her curiosity – she had shown a similar interest in Egwardo when Katana, Nashville and Fu-Dog had returned with Brooklyn.

"Yes, there are." Brighid smiled at the other female. "My brothers Tabbris and Hamaliel are expecting their first child among the eggs. They have been waiting for a very long time for this."

"They are both males? Then… did Faust have to create their egg, too?" Angela did her best to hide her shock. Brighid had referred to the males' relationship much more casually than Princess Katharine would have.

The coral-colored female giggled at Angela's response. "Yes, although they really had to beg her for it. She didn't think that their relationship would last very long. They were rookery brothers, and it's always been their way to fight and bicker with one another. Evangeline loves to pick on Tabbris for it. Even among gargoyles, children are such cruel creatures."

"Perhaps…" Angela hesitated for a moment. It wasn't her place to ask such a question, but… "Are there other males like them in your clan?"

"There is a homosexual male in yours?" Brighid tilted her head analytically. "Obviously not the older, red male, nor the larger one who looks at you the way that Mephistopheles looks at Faust."

"It's… It's Lexington." Angela admitted.

Brighid smiled again, this time looking a little amused. "You're worried that, because he doesn't like females, he will not be able to find a mate who can care for him properly. That, or the humans' fear of such strange relationships has rubbed off on you. Either way, you needn't worry; I felt worried for Tabbris when he said he would become Hamaliel's mate. In spite of his namesake, Hamaliel has not always been the kindest male, and he has always enjoyed picking on Tabbris. But, they have proved all of us quite wrong – they managed not to kill one another before their first egg hatched."

Now Angela smiled at the thought. She couldn't wait for her first egg to be laid, let alone hatched. But that was still some time off. If she felt this way, she had often wondered how her more impatient mother had felt before the Wyvern Massacre. "I'm sorry. I just… I do worry for my friends a lot. Lexington is smart and kind. All of the boys here are. And when Mephistopheles said that Thaddeus was not only his son, but Faust's as well…"

Brighid laughed. "You really do like being in everyone's business, don't you?"

Angela gasped and flustered. "I do not!" She immediately smiled sheepishly. "Well… maybe a little. But only because our clan has been through a great deal."

"You don't have to explain, Angela." Brighid patted the lavender female on the shoulder. "You remind me a little of Faust that way. I don't doubt that many of my brothers and sisters will warm up to you quickly for that reason alone."

"I remind you of Faust?"

"Hard to tell, I know, but Faust is actually much kinder than she acts. What you've seen is her attitude towards strangers. She's much more awkward around humans, especially. It's been so long since she's associated with them." Brighid lamented, but shook her head. "But I meant to compliment you, not psychoanalyze my own clan-mother. I think that, when your first rookery hatches, you will be a fine mother. I do wonder, though… in a clan this small, how do you intend to raise your hatchlings?"

Angela fell silent at the question. It was true, the way she had been raised was very different than the way that her parents, even Broadway, had been raised. She cared about a connection to her child; that did not mean that she would give them precedence over another, but she _did_ want to know the hatchling that she and Broadway would give life to. Broadway wouldn't deny her that, and she didn't think that Goliath would, either. "How were you raised?"

"I was raised alongside only Akriel. He is my only rookery brother. Faust made us earn our names, but she wouldn't let us go nameless for long. When we were older, she told us that we were made from the blood of gargoyles who had been slain. We were only fledglings at the time."

"What a horrible thing to tell a fledgling!"

"Faust and Mephistopheles treat even hatchlings like they are adults. They do not baby us any more than is age-appropriate." Brighid shrugged, looking unperturbed. "For a long time, they feared that Mephistopheles was the last gargoyle of our kind. That is why we were raised to be warriors, bards, workers, artists… all before we could even learn to glide! The first time that I saw a human mother coddling an infant, I was baffled at why she would talk to her own child as if it were less than a dumb animal." She chuckled at the memory. "Faust wanted to give us everything she'd wanted as a child. Mephistopheles wanted to give us everything his clan had given him. Their marriage was actually very well-matched, in that respect."

"You talk about Faust as though she's been with Mephistopheles, conducting these experiments, for a very long time." Angela's brow furrowed a little. "How old is she?"

Brighid looked a little amused. "As old as the mountain stones."

**=^o.o^=**

Jeez; I don't think that I jam-packed enough information into this chapter. I hope I didn't put anyone to sleep! At any rate, I want to remind readers of the high-OC count of this story. I like to try making multiple characters, and then seeing just how unique I can make them. That said, I _am_ guilty of renaming an already-existing character so that they can be in multiple stories – anyone who's read Vlad's Son may notice Akriel, whom Brighid mentioned, is very much the same as Aaron, the oldest son of the Stitch Witch.

Hey, don't give me that look. He's a good character!

Nyaa! *puffs up tail and runs away*


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything of Gargoyles canon-osity. I also don't believe that 'canon-osity' is a word, but oh well.

Nyaa.

**=^o.o^=**

**Chapter 3**

"Faust's clan certainly is an interesting bunch." Fox mused as four strange gargoyles flew by the large, glass windows that kept the garden safe from the city air. Every night for the past week this had happened, as dependable as the sun rising in the east: always four gargoyles total, never long after the sun rose. If she had to guess, she could speculate that their home was not far away.

But that wasn't what she was wondering about at the moment.

"Yes; it would seem that being frozen for a thousand years really does make all the difference." Xanatos replied. The two of them were sitting at an outdoor table. He was reading the newspaper for the second time that day. Disarmingly normal, if one ignored their infant son being taught magic by the Trickster, Puck, only a stone's toss away.

She shot him a smirk, even though he was pointedly not looking at her. "So, why did you agree to it? Why did you hire Faust? Her clan? Her research?"

He looked up from his reading, mimicking a hurt expression. "Do you really think so little of me?"

Fox's smile widened a little as she tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. _Do you really think _I'm_ that stupid?_ "David…"

He sighed and shook his head. She was only going to keep teasing him about it, and when she stopped teasing – _if_ she stopped teasing – she had the potential of getting angry. An angry wife wasn't healthy for any man. "I'm hoping that when he grows up and inherits everything, there'll still be a clan here to protect him." Xanatos looked pointedly in Alexander's direction. It was difficult to believe that the boy had grown so much in such a short time, even if he _was_ part Fay.

"Is that all?" Fox looked in the same direction. No sooner had she asked the question when she knew that that very well _could_ be all. Her David would be completely crushed if anything happened to their son… or to her, but she could take care of herself. Alexander probably could, too, if one were to split hairs, but he was their child; in their minds, he would always need their protection, possibly even well into adulthood.

"For now." Xanatos smirked at her.

Fox chuckled and rolled her eyes. "I think you _like_ getting into trouble."

"Of course. It keeps my life interesting."

* * *

"Faust? You in here?"

The geneticist barely lifted her head as the door opened and Elisa and Angela let themselves in. "Miss Maza. Angela. You are here in my laboratory." Glancing away from her microscope, she smirked. "Color me surprised."

"Mephistopheles said you wouldn't mind the visit." Angela was looking around in mild wonder. "This… This is your lab?"

Elisa was reacting in much the same way. "It looks like a New Age shop."

That was a very accurate statement. While the large room had computers, scientific equipment, and several large tubes – like those that had incubated Thailog and the clones – there were also stranger items, like candles, incense, and very, very old books, such as the one that was sitting, open, next to the microscope. Also of note were several items that, while certainly scientific in nature, looked like they belonged in a museum, or an antiques collection.

"I'm pretty sure I've told your clan that I am not purely a scientist." Faust adjusted her glasses, grinning devilishly. "That's why my methods are superior to Sevarius'. That old nutjob's got nothin' on me."

The redhead's demeanor wasn't quite what Elisa was expecting. Then again, that was precisely why she was here – to keep an eye out for her clan until they were _all_ sure that Faust could be trusted. Still… "I wanted to apologize about our first meeting."

"Apologize? What for?" Faust made a face and waved a hand, turning back to her work. "I'm not the most socially competent person in the world, in case you hadn't noticed. Getting along with humans never was my strong suit."

"I can relate." Elisa muttered, frowning a little.

"What are you looking at?" Angela asked, approaching Faust carefully and curiously.

"I have here the remains of a fallen clan, hopefully." Faust stated matter-of-factly. "Mephistopheles and I have put extensive research into retracing the patterns of ancient clans, specifically how they migrated, and what happened to exiles. At about the head of this millennium, entire clans were destroyed by fearful humans in their sleep. They didn't get Wind Ceremonies, and the only upside to that is that their remains may be large enough to get genetic samples from." She looked at them both with a grave look. "And no, I will not allow the Cold Trio fiasco an encore performance."

"You heard about that." Elisa allowed herself to walk a little closer to Faust's workbench as well. "What's a… Wind Ceremony?"

"It's the gargoyle version of a funeral. _'Ashes to ashes, dust to dust; all is one on the wind.'"_ Faust sat up, frowning at the wall. "When a gargoyle dies, their remains are either burned or crushed, depending on whether they died in their sleep or… some other way. Then, their clan releases the ashes-or-dust and flies through them, so that the fallen clanmates will always be with them."

Angela smiled softly. "That's beautiful. I had no idea…" – Faust shot her a look. – "I was raised by humans on Avalon. I didn't meet another gargoyle outside of my rookery siblings until Goliath and Elisa arrived."

"I see." Faust sighed half-heartedly. "Well, that's no surprise, then. It's good, actually. Who wants to think about death within their own family? Especially so close to the upcoming solstice. Only a few months to go…" She leaned back in her chair, gazing at the various pieces of what Elisa had previously thought was rubble. "…I wonder if I shouldn't wait for the next generation to be hatched before asking Akriel and Brighid to perform a Wind Ceremony for these souls. Maybe then they will find some rest."

Elisa picked up a large chunk of stone thoughtfully. It was the size of a misshapen bowling ball. "I thought you were looking for genetic material."

"I am. Even the dead want descendants sometimes. Nothing brings greater peace of mind than to know that the clan will continue to survive." Faust suddenly gave a grunt and a groan. "All of this talk of the dead! Even _they_ don't want to hear about it. Can we change the subject? Does your clan have plans for the Hatching? I mean, I know that there's only one egg in your rookery, but that's _still_ gotta be cause for celebration, right?"

"Yes, we're all happy about the Hatching of Egwardo!" Angela giggled. It was like the ice had officially been broken. "Hudson and Goliath have been reminiscing about past Hatchings. They said that the clan used to have celebrations for many nights while waiting for the rookery to hatch!"

"No joke." Faust grinned. "It's the most important celebration on the gargoyle calendar!"

* * *

Goliath and his clan were not the only Wyvern survivors with the coming hatching season on their mind. Demona had seen the egg that Brooklyn's mate took about with her, everywhere she went – even in the short while that Katana and Nashville had been in this time, it was hard to miss. It was hard for someone like _her_ to miss. That single egg brought a small glimmer of hope for the next coming generation of gargoyles, although her hatred quickly dashed that hope when she thought of how Goliath's soft-hearted leadership would no doubt get the hatchling, his brother, indeed their entire _clan_ killed in the end.

Her surveillance didn't miss the new scientist Xanatos had hired… or the clan that followed. This 'Mephistopheles' was as much a fool as her former beloved, putting so much faith in so foul a creature. Faust and Xanatos conspired to bring about a legion of gargoyles subservient to humans. That was obvious to her, so why could no one else see it?

She had watched Mephistopheles' clan as it came and went. When she couldn't find their home or their rookery quickly, it had made her blood boil. But, she reminded herself, perhaps it would not do to try and infiltrate their clan. She had toyed with the thought of taking on an alias, asking to join them… but surely Goliath had already 'warned' them of her and the threat she posed to their human pet – and she _did_ pose a threat to the human.

But the human had uses, perhaps. Any human could be bribed into doing something, so long as one had the thing that they wanted most; usually, that was money. Humans worshipped it more consistently than anything else. They built empires around it, fought and killed to have it, believed that it symbolized power. In fact, it was because of this simplistic belief that it _did_ symbolize power in their world.

The pale blue female watched her surveillance tapes for perhaps the millionth time. She would have to kill the spy who usurped them for her – the videos held none of the answers that Demona wanted or needed! She wanted to know _how_ this Faust worked, and why her methods were supposedly superior to Sevarius', as the young woman claimed on more than one occasion. She spoke of mixing sorcery and science, and of alchemy. Alchemy _was_ sorcery and science, so why on earth would she refer to it as a third, standalone thing?

Demona reclined in her seat with a tight frown, her claws intertwining as she scowled over them. The human could be lying. Maybe she was trying to pass herself off as something she wasn't while trying to use Xanatos' funds and influence to meet his own gain. Demona was all too aware of the namesake of Johanna Faust and Mephistopheles, of the tale of an elderly alchemist who longed for greater knowledge and sold his soul to some demon of the human underworld: Johan Georg Faust and the Devil's errand-runner, Mephistopheles.

What could she do with this information? Her mind turned the facts over and over, going through them with a fine-toothed comb. It made her angry that the fool, like Goliath, had allowed himself to be named by humans after one of their villains. But what of the woman? Why would she merely gender-swap a name to create so weak a cover-name? And she had had it for so long – years, according to the information that Demona had collected while researching the human's history – and yet… it didn't escape the gargoyle that Faust appeared to be very young. She had to be immortal.

Immortality wasn't for humans. Macbeth was proof of that. They didn't learn from their mistakes, be it on an individual level _or_ as a species. The thought made a small growl escape the gargoyle, her eyes briefly glowing red. Perhaps she and Macbeth weren't the first to fall victim to the Third Race and their so-called gifts…

She did her best to push the anger aside. She would have to have a word with this Faust, so that Demona could, hopefully, finally obtain the clan that she so ached for.

* * *

"So, your name is… Akriel, was it?" Hudson frowned. "Tell me, lad – what's wrong with your eyes, then?"

This was the first conversation that the old gargoyle had sought out with any of the strange clan's members, and it just so happened that it was because the one he'd decided to speak with had the unusual disability of being blind. He was, otherwise, a physically capable young male, almost as tall as Goliath and Mephistopheles but far leaner. His rookery sister, Brighid, and another male had helped the boy glide to the castle, and he made his way about with a sort of collapsible cane for aid.

Hudson had only known a few elders in his life who had lost their vision late in their own lives, and they had perished not long afterwards.

"I lost my vision in a battle when I was still a fledgling, actually." Akriel said as he settled into one of the library's chairs. He placed his cane across his lap and patted Bronx's head as the beast crawled up to his side and sniffed at him curiously. "Ah, someone new. You're probably thinking the same thing, eh?"

"Aye, Bronx has been quite interested in all of these new gargoyles. We lost our own clan long ago, and then we were cursed to sleep for a thousand years." Hudson sighed and shook his head. "It was a rough night, to say the very least."

"That would explain the accent your clan has. Your diction is very… proper. It makes for a nice change. And yours in particular is Scottish, right?" Akriel rubbed his chin. "Brighid told me there were two gargoyles who were each missing an eye. You are…?"

"Hudson, aye; sorry for my rudeness, lad."

"Rudeness? Hardly. Needing to exchange names is not something that our kind has done as long as the humans and the Fay have, or so I'm told." The younger male turned his head as the door opened. Goliath and Brooklyn had come to visit with their mentor, and they seemed a little surprised to see a blind gargoyle in a room full of books. "Hello?"

"Goliath, Brooklyn; this is Akriel, the eldest of Faust's… er, 'created' rookeries." Hudson said as they drew closer.

"It's good to meet you, Akriel. I hope that the trip wasn't difficult for you." Goliath said, taking the male's outstretched hand and shaking it.

"No. Gliding is easy enough once you've learned how. Learning to do so without sight is possible." The stranger shook Brooklyn's hand as well before resuming his scratching of Bronx's head. The beast was in heaven with the simple gesture. "I was just telling Hudson about it, actually. Mephistopheles told Brighid and I stories about what happened to gargoyles who lost their sight or their wings when we were hatchlings. Faust was never very happy with him for it." He cracked a grin.

"Aye. He says it happened when he was a fledgling." Hudson ran his claws through his beard. "Though I must ask, lad – what would so young a gargoyle be fighting with? Humans?"

"Other gargoyles, actually. A small cell, hardly larger than our own. We were vying for resources at the time, and their leader was threatened by Mephistopheles, I believe. As you've seen, he is a very large male, but he's also very calculating. The leader of this other clan was a female, also calculating, although she didn't have nearly as much brawn. I have a hard time remembering her appearance beyond that." Akriel frowned in thought. "Brighid and I had wandered off into their territory. Their beast attacked her. I tried to get between them, and his claws dug right in. Our parents were so angry with us for doing something that they had warned us about, and Faust was especially upset over my injuries when stone sleep didn't restore my vision. I think we were… maybe twenty human years?"

"You'd have been about the same age as Nashville." Brooklyn winced at the thought. "So… what's your place in your clan?" He winced again, this time as both Goliath and Hudson shot him stern looks.

"I am as much a warrior as my brothers and sisters." Akriel sounded amused, waving away any thought that he might have been offended by the question. "Faust knew that it would have killed any gargoyle to be rendered useless in a battle, so she insisted on my training being carefully thought-out from that point."

"Katana's homeland had stories about blind warriors. Swordsmen and ninjas who fought so well that it made their opponents feel as though their eyesight was more of a liability than an asset." Brooklyn recalled. "I never met any for myself. Her clan's leader said they were just myths and legends."

"Then perhaps we should spar sometime." The younger gargoyle grinned, getting to his feet. "For now, though, it seems I'm wanted elsewhere. You'll have to excuse me."

"Wanted elsewhere…?" Goliath turned his head as Akriel passed him and was surprised to see Brighid had been standing quietly at the door. Judging from their similar expressions, Hudson and Brooklyn hadn't noticed her, either. "Brighid, how long have you been there?"

"Not long." She smiled and put her claws in Akriel's. He brought them to his lips, kissing them gently in greeting. "I wanted Akriel to meet Angela and her mate. The large one."

"Broadway. Yeah, he and Lexington should be out on patrol. They're due back any minute." Brooklyn looked at his two clanmates and whispered, "How did he know?"

"Because when you are blind, you learn how to hear a pin drop… or a heart beat." Akriel chuckled as he walked out of the room. "Alright, Brighid, let's meet this Angela who you're so fond of."

She giggled at the older males. "Sorry about him. He might be young, but you'd think he was an old man!" With that, she hurried to walk with him, holding his free claw in hers as they went along together.

**=^n.n^=**

My goals for this chapter was to make clear Xanatos' starting motive for having hired Faust in the first place, strengthen the relationships a little more between Mephistopheles' and Goliath's clans, and cue in to the fact that Demona _is_ aware of Faust's presence. She's a very clever gargoyle, after all – it would be hard to believe if she _wasn't_ aware of Faust! Also, I've something in store for Angela. Hm… *nefarious kitty thoughts*

Nyaa…


End file.
